Improvement in portable pumps or engines



2 Sheets-Sheet 1. D; BIGKPORD.

Portable Pump 0? Engine.

No. 213,276. Patented Mar. 18, 1879.

MPETERS. FHOTO-LITHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON. D C.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

1 BICK PORD. Portable Pump .01 Engine. No. 213,276;

Patented Mar. 18, 1879.

1V1 ZINESSES UNITED STATES PATENT Orrucnu DANA BIOKFORD, OF NEW YORK, N.Y.

IMPROVEMENTIN PORTABLE PUMPS OR ENGINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 213,276, dated March18, 1879; application filed March 30, 1878.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DANA Brcxronn, of New York, in the county of NewYork and State of New York, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Portable Pumps or Engines; and I do hereby declare th atthe following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,and to letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of thisspecification.

My invention relates to a novel construction of portable pump or enginesuitable for garden uses, conservatories, &c., or for a firepump forthrowing either water or fire-extinguishing compounds, as well as fornumerous other purposes where suction or force pumps are needed foreither liquids or air, the construction being such that pistons andstuffingboxes are dispensed with, and all friction,leakage, and otherobjections incident thereto are avoided, while at the same time it maybe made small, and readily worked by a child to throw a steady stream avery considerable distance, and is simple and cheap in construction.

Figure 1 shows, in elevation, a form of pump embodying my inventioncomplete for action; Fig.2, a vertical section through one of theclastic vacuum cups or caps, and through the airchamber and a portion ofthe box, showing the position of the valves, Fig. 2*, a view from theunder side of the inside of the box or tank; Fig. 3, a plan; Fig. 4, anelevation, partly in section, of the same apparatus, but with the rockeradapted to be worked either by the foot or by hand, and with theair-bulb omitted ,the exh austch amber being sufficiently capacious ofitself to serve as an air-chamber to form an air-cushion to give thesteady stream.

Referring to the drawings, Ais a box, tank, or chest, adapted forcontaining water or other liquid, and it is divided by a partition, 1),into two independent compartments, 0 and d, and may be placed upon theground or floor, and is to be supplied with the water or other liquidused through a suction'm outh or through a suction-pipeoraflexible tube,E, from an yconvenient source of supply, either near by-as, forinstance, from abucket, tank, or stream-or by drawing it, by the actionof the pump itself, through such tube a distance of .as much as one ortwo hundred feet, as circumstances may require. The extremity of thistube may 111 some cases be provided with a strainer or filter, as shownat c.

F is the dischargingtube; G, a rocking handle or lever, for operatingthe pump; and 9, an air-compressing chamber, to insure a steady throw ordischarge of the stream or shower of liquid, air, or gas, as the casemay be. H H are two elastic vacuum caps or cups, made of rubber, rubbercompound, or other equivalent flexible and elastic material, preferablymade to bulge outward, as shown, and each adapted to be alternatelycompressed and expanded, or, rather, collapsed and distended, bythe action of the rocker I, worked by the hand-lever G, or by the actionof a foot-worked rocker or treadle, I, as shown in Fig. 4, therespective ends of the rocker being appropriately fastened to therespective caps H H, so as positively to act upon them alternately tocreate a vacuum and to suck in and then expel the liquid, air, or gas,as will presently be more fully described. The fastenings shown for thispurpose are seen in dotted lines in Fig. 1, in which it is an upperplate, and h an under plate, between which the central part of the capis clamped, a screw, h, serving to hold them together, and to connectthem to the arm of the lover or rocker.

These vacuum-caps arepreferably made with a rim, whereby they may thebetter be secured to their places by means of rings or washers w, andeach cap, as will be seen, covers the valve-openings, thus becoming ofitself a vacuum-chamber;

The bottom of the box or chest maybe constructed as follows: The chamber0 being provided with two similar ball inlet-valves, j, and the chamberat with two exhaust or outlet valves, is, it being, of course,understood that when two elastic vacuum-caps are used in theconstruction each is provided with its own valves j and '70, the box orchest may be made water or air tight in any way desired, or by rubber orother packing; or its lower baseplate may be soldered, or in any waypermanently secured to the box.

L is an outlet-tube leading from the compartment d, and communicatingwith the discharge pipe or tube F, the air-chamber g also communicatingwith this compartment (1, as seen in Fig. 2.

Instead of the air-chamber g, the box may be made somewhat deeper orhigher relatively, so as to permit sufficient air-space above the liquid(when liquids are used) to insure the throwing of a steady stream, theresultant action of the air thus compressed be1ng.the same as when theelevated air-chamber is employed.

The form and size of the apparatus, as also of its difierent parts, itwill be evident, may be varied as convenience or taste may demand, andother valves may be substituted for ball valves, so long as theessential features of the invention be preserved.

When throwing liquids, the action is as follows: The end of the tube Ebeing inserted in the body of the liquid to be used, or connected with ahydrant, and the handle Gr placed in its socket or holder and rocked toone side, or the foot-rocker I being operated, it compresses one of thevacuum-caps, and lifts the other to create a vacuum beneath or withinit, and which at once causes an inrushing stream, through its valvej,into this vacuumchamber, and upon reversing the movement of the rocker,I or I, the reverse of these movements takes place, and the liquid justdrawn in is driven through the outletvalve it into chamber (1, andthence into and out through the discharging-tube F, this latter movementalso creating at the same time avacuum in the other cup, the air-chamberserving to make the discharging stream steady and continuous.

M is a foot-piece projecting laterally from the box, and on which theoperator may press or stand with his foot, to hold the pump firmly whenusing it.

It will be evident that my apparatus may be employed to force air orgas, as well as liquids, and by attaching it by its discharging tube oroutlet to the inlet-pipe N of a carbureter (see Fig. 5) it may be usedin many branches of art where a blow-pipe or heater is required-as, forinstance, for jewelers or dentists use, or for tinsmiths, or forsoldering purposes, or for heating soldering-irons, Ste.

It may also be used to compress air or gases, or to drive by air orwater small dental or other implements.

It may also be used in connection with a tank or vessel, either onwheels or not, containing any fire-extinguishing liquid which it may bedesirable, by means of my pump, to discharge upon the burning house ormaterial; the pump, while always ready for use for any or all thepurposes for which it is adapted, being from its construction capableand thus brought into use by any child or inexperienced person as anefficient fire-extinguisher, and havin g thefurther great advantage thatit can be readily carried by any child to any part of the building whereit is most needed, or where such tank or tanks or any water-supply maybe.

It may be made not only of metal, but also of glass, pottery-ware, &c.,or of metal covered with enamel, tin, zinc, hard rubber, or anyappropriate material suitable to prevent corrosion or rust, or injuryfrom the fire-extinguishing compound.

The whole apparatus, except the workinglever and the dischargingpipe,may be immersed in the liquid to be pumped, and in such case, of course,no suction hose or pipe would be needed.

In some cases I can have but a single vac uum-cup, instead of the twoabove described, placing it in connection with a larger air chamber, andthereby secure a steady stream, though dispensing with one of these capsor cups. p

The apparatus is also very useful for bath ing purposes, either forbathing the whole body, or for directing a stream or spray upon anydesired part of the person, or for a shower bath; and it may be placeddirectly in the wa ter of a bath-tub or other vessel for such purf pose,and used in connection with a portable frame or covering. A privatebath-room may be improvised at once.

I claim 1. The base piece made substantially as described, and providedwith a bottom for the chambers c and d, and with the valve-openingspassing from these chambers into the elastic cups, which cups are heldby clamps or screws to the top of the base, and worked by a rocker orlever.

2. The rocker I, connected at its opposite arms or extremities directlyand rigidly to the rubber caps or cups H H, and provided at its centerwith a single vertical arm having a socket to receive an operatinghandle or lever, Gr, substantially as shown and described.

3. The tank or box A, divided into the compartments c and d, and havinginlet and out let valves communicating with elastic chambers,substantially as shown and described.

4. The base piece or frame having the chambers c and d, the openings forthe valve-seats, the projection or foot-piece M, and the bear ing forthe rocker or lever, all cast or formed integral therewith.

5. In combination with the base-piece provided with the chambers c andd, and with the openings for valve-seats, as described, the elasticvacuum-cup, the rocker, and an airchamber, substantially as set forth.

6. The bed or base constructed with chambers and valve-seats extendingdownward to near the bottom, thus leaving a space above rocker, anddischarging-tube, as shown and. for the air to collect and form anelastic cushset forth. ion therein.

7. The lifting or suction and force pump, DANA BIGKFORD' substantiallyas described, consisting of the Witnesses: base-piece with its box,chambers, and. valves, PENNINGTON HALSTED, the elastic caps,air-chamber, double-acting S. F. AUSTIN.

